Last night's first Democratic debate was undoubtedly more in-depth and substantive than the two GOP debates—half the number of candidates, minus Trump, equals way more issues covered. But that doesn't mean it didn't have its fair share of funny, bizarre, or straight-up cringeworthy moments (Hillary even made a joke about women taking longer to pee).
Here, five follow-up questions:
After teasing this mental image early on, she elaborated later in the debate: "Literally, President Obama and I were hunting for the Chinese, going throughout this huge convention center." One of Hillary's biggest criticisms is that she isn't relatable enough, but really, what's more relatable than crashing a party you're not invited to?
He boasted of the fact that he's "had no scandals" in the 30 years he's been in politics, but come on, Linc. Everyone has something. And just look at the guy. Last night he came across more like a sweet granddad who was just happy to be there than a former mayor, governor, and senator. We're suspicious.
Anderson Cooper referenced Bernie's admitted dope dabbling during a question about supporting recreational legalization (for the record, he does). But did the Vermont senator really try it only twice, and "unsuccessfully," whatever that means? He came of age as a war-protesting hippie in the '60s, and his unofficial slogan is "Feel the Bern." Just saying.
Though he ended up with a respectable amount of total speaking time, Webb used a lot of it to express his feelings about the fact that the other kids got called on more than him. He brought it up more than five different times, prompting Anderson Cooper to finally snap, "You agreed to these rules and you're wasting time. So if you would finish your answer, we'll move on." And because Webb is polling at less than 1% and is barely campaigning, his griping made him come off more like a kid who was picked last for kickball than a rising star of a politician.
Though the Republicans came up frequently as a group target in the debate, individual candidates were hardly mentioned at all—except for when O'Malley called Trump the "carnival barker in the Republican Party." Maybe it's the fact that he's the cute one, or that he said it in that accent you can't place, but O'Malley's passionate Trump jab left us wanting to hear more about what he really thinks—preferably over dimly-lit drinks.
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